Second Chances
by a-lady-to-me
Summary: Modern A/U - Response to prompt from Tumblr: "A 19 year old Anna meets a 35 year old Mr. Bates in London."


**A/N****: _This is my, very late, response to TerrieJane's Banna Weekend Fic Challenge :) The prompt was -_** _**"A 19 year old Anna meets a 35 year old Mr. Bates in London."**_

_**I hope you all enjoy this. I might….**_**might_ be tempted to add more to it later on if it gets a good response! Thank you to my darling Alexis for reading through this for me. xo_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Banna or Downton…much to my dismay._**

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John Bates steps were a little lighter as he left the confinement of his lawyer's office. It had been a grueling few months; Vera seemed determined to take him for everything he had. For all he cared she could have it all. But today….today their 10 year marriage was finally over, and he was a free man at last. He couldn't help but feel guilty for the way things had happened between them; they had loved each other once...when they were too young to know what love was. He'd married her against the advice of his family and friends when he was an immature and arrogant 25 year old. However, he'd grown up quickly. John had gone off to Afghanistan not long after the wedding, and nearly lost his life in the process. When he'd come home it had been to a less than considerate wife, who just so happened to be having multiple affairs in his absence. This only led to him drinking more and more, which never helped any situation.

John had taken her back time and time again, unwilling to admit that he'd made a mistake...damn his pride, for Vera just kept using him, lying, and cheating until he'd had enough and left her. He'd be damned if he ever let himself fall into another trap like that. His mother had been supportive through the entire process, reminding him that he was still a young man, and with a much better head on his shoulders now than he used to have.

"_You've traveled your way to hell and back, my boy. You deserve happiness, and I believe you will find it. It may not be where you expect it, or in whom, but just keep your heart open for it."_

His mother had always been his voice of his reason...his conscience, and now more than ever before he was determined to listen to her. So taking her advice to heart, John walked through the doors of the large office building, and onto the bustling streets of London with a fresh outlook on life, and an open heart.

He knew exactly where he wanted to go to relax a bit, and think about all that had been accomplished that day. So he made his way towards the peacefulness of the park. He'd just recently stopped using his cane, his knee having healed enough that he could walk without it with only a hint of a limp. It was a little strange at first, but he found his rhythm quickly.

John entered the park and smiled towards the area where all the children were playing. He sent up a silent thank you to whoever was listening that he and Vera had never brought children into the world. Not that he never wanted to be a father, he did very much in fact, but he couldn't imagine having them with her.

Suddenly he was knocked from his musings by the sensation of a small body running into his legs. John managed to catch the child before he fell back onto the sidewalk, and he looked down to see a boy that couldn't be more than 3 years old looking up at him with horror written across his face.

"Woah there, little man, are you alright?"

The boy just nodded as John settled him back onto his feet.

Then a voice peeled across the pathway, approaching them quickly.

"George!" The woman called.

John looked up to see whom the voice came from, assuming it to be the boy's mother and was dumbstruck. She had to be an angel of some kind. Her blonde hair was tied back away from her face, and she wore a simple pair of jeans and white blouse that billowed out around her as she ran. She was out of breath when she finally made it over to them, and it was then that John realized how young she was. Much too young for him to be taking notice of the way her blue eyes sparkled and buzzed with life.

"I'm so sorry," she panted. "I saw him take off for the ball, but I couldn't get to him before he plowed into you."

"That's quite alright." John responded with a smile. "No harm done."

The women kneeled down to check George for any scrapes and John noticed the ruby ring shining on her ring finger. Just one more reason not to dwell on her beauty.

"Georgie, sweetheart, you need to be more careful and watch where you're going. Can you apologize to this man?"

The little boy looked up at him with wide blue eyes that nearly matched the woman's.

"I sowwy, sir."

John laughed cheerfully and ruffled the boys hair. "Don't you worry, little man."

"You can go play now, sweetie." The woman said as she patted his back and he darted off. She then turned her full attention to him. "Thank you for catching him, he gets a little bit careless sometimes...I'm afraid that's a side-effect of being a 3 year old." she laughed, and the angelic sound of it shot straight through his heart with such a force that he unconsciously took a step back from her.

"Yes, uhh...well I suppose we were all that young and careless once."

"I suppose so," she smiled back at him.

Silence fell between them as they both stood and watched the children playing. John knew he should keep walking; wish her a good day, and continue on his way, but something kept him glued to that spot until finally he realized he had to say something.

"He looks an awful lot like you...your boy."

Her eyes widened as she looked at him with what appeared to be shock. "Oh gosh no, no, he's not mine. I'm his nanny. George is my best friend's little boy." The words came out in a rush of what sounded like nervousness mixed with laughter. He must have been giving her a curious look, because she recovered with a smile.

"I'm sorry, that probably made me sound a little desperate. You aren't the first to think he's mine, but I always feel strangely about people assuming that. I'm Anna, by the way," she held her hand out to him, and he took it.

A bolt of electricity shot through him at the touch of her soft hand. _Stop it, John._ "I'm John...John Bates."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Bates." The sound of his formal name rolling off her tongue was unlike anything he'd ever heard before. "Please, just call me John," he smiled kindly.

"What brings you to the park today, John?" she asked, making polite conversation with him.

"I was just enjoying the nice day, thought I would get some air and take a walk."

"In your suit?" she giggled as she looked him over.

"Ahh well, you see I've just come from a meeting."

"Are you a businessman of some kind?" Her question was perfectly innocent, and John felt a pull to tell her more about himself. Something he was not at all used to, being such a private and reserved man.

"Not exactly, no. I'm an editor at a publishing house. The meeting was with my divorce lawyer." That was a detail he probably could have left out, but for some reason the words had just fallen from his mouth. He mentally berated himself, but when he looked over at her her eyes were soft and understanding. He guessed her to be in her early twenties, so he fully expected an onslaught of questions concerning his slip of the tongue, but her maturity far surpassed her years as she simply nodded, and continued talking.

"Being an editor must be an exciting profession, I'm an avid reader myself. I've always kind of thought I might like to be in that line of work." She paused a moment, as if contemplating something. Then she turned fully towards him and met his gaze head on.

"Perhaps you could have lunch with George and I, and you could tell me more about what you do?"

It was a perfectly acceptable request, and John nearly spilled his answer without a second thought, but he did need to think….something was happening here. Something strange and foreign to him. Then his eye caught sight of her ring again, and he sighed with a strange sense of disappointment.

"Oh no, I couldn't impose on you two."

"You wouldn't be at all. I always pack extra in case George makes any friends. Today it seems it's my turn to invite a friend to lunch." Her smile took his breath away. He'd tried to build the walls up around himself, but she'd only torn them all down simply by being the brightest star he'd ever seen.

"What would your husband think if he saw us eating?"

"Well I hope he would think nothing of me having lunch with a new friend, especially since _he_ doesn't exist," she laughed.

"But your ring?"

"Oh this old thing?" she smiled as she gazed down at her hand. "This was my late mother's. I wear it to remember her."

John felt like an utter fool. "I'm so sorry, Anna. How foolish of me, please forgive me." He lowered his head as his cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"I'll forgive you, if you'll join me for lunch."

He looked and saw that her eyes were shining even brighter than before. John really had no choice but to accept, and as he followed Anna to their picnic spot, he felt an almost invisible force pushing him along after her. For some unknown reason he felt like he was moving in the right direction for the first time in his life.

When they made it to the blanket and George joined them, her smile lit up his world.

"I hope ham sandwiches and juice boxes are alright."

"Perfect," was his simple response as he sat there eating and chatting with her for the rest of his afternoon.


End file.
